Student Information

One of the major aims of the Lorne Proteins Committee has been to foster the development of the next generation of protein scientists. With this in mind we introduced an exciting new initiative for the 2012 meeting: Students were provided FREE REGISTRATION for the first time! This is one of many special initiatives we will be providing to student delegates from 2012 onwards. The offer was capped to the first 150 student registrations so register early.

Conditions for receiving free student registration:

• The student’s official supervisor or co-supervisor must also register for the meeting (registration and payment must be received by the earlybird deadline).
• The student must submit an abstract for a poster or a talk presentation.
• The offer will be capped to the first 150 student registrations.
• If for any reason a supervisor cancels their registration, the student will be required to pay the registration fee.
• The free registration offer is capped at a maximum of 10 students per supervisor.
• The deadline to register for the complimentary student registration is by the poster submission deadline - Friday 9th of December 2011 (or until 150 places are reached).

In rare circumstances the Committee may consider requests for free student registrations after the advertised deadline if there are compelling circumstances such as late student enrolments. In such cases the student's supervisor should provide a letter through the Conference Organiser (dw@asnevents.net.au) detailing why the Committee should consider the request. Any decision by the Committee will be considered final.

STUDENT POSTER PRIZES
A number of  poster presentation prizes are awarded at each conference (see “Past Award Winners” page).

STUDENT LUNCH WITH INVITED SPEAKERS - NO MORE SPACES AVAILABLE
Student delegates were invited to attend the "Meet the Speakers" student luncheon.  This function provided an excellent opportunity for students to meet world leading international and local protein scientists. We understand that it can be very intimidating to ask questions of such eminent scientists or to divert them from in depth conversations, so this year a number of early career researchers were available to facilitate discussions, hopefully making this an enjoyable and rewarding experience for everyone.

This function was free but ticketed and limited to the first 77 student registrants who indicated their intention to attend.

GRADUATE STUDENT EXCHANGE PROGRAM

The program
Both the Lorne Conference on Protein Structure and Function (LCPSF) and the Protein Society would like to promote joint activities that foster links between the two organizations. The exchange of speakers, which commenced in 2009, is working well, and we would now like to broaden these activities to provide an opportunity for graduate students working in the field of protein science to develop closer links. Thus the Graduate Student Exchange Program has been established. This host-based program will provide Australian students the opportunity to meet and network with peers in the US in conference, laboratory and social settings. Also, Australian students will benefit from hosting US exchange students in a reciprocal arrangement. It is felt that the relationships established among students in this way will have lasting benefits not only to the students themselves but also to the future development of protein science in both Australia and the United States.

Awardee activities and expectations
LCPSF student delegates selected to participate in the exchange program will attend the Protein Society Symposium in the same year of their award. Thus, awardees from the upcoming Lorne Conference on Protein Structure and Function will attend the 2012 Protein Society meeting in San Diego, USA at which they are expected to present a poster.  The Protein Society will arrange for local graduate students to host the LCPSF students during the symposium. Also, LCPSF students will be provided opportunities to network with Protein Society Council members and invited speakers. Students are also strongly encouraged to take the opportunity to visit leading laboratories in the US as part of their sponsored trip. When applying for the program, students should list up to four US laboratories they would like to visit. If selected into the program it will be the student’s responsibility to contact the Professors of their nominated US laboratories to ask if they can visit them before or after the symposium. The number of laboratories visited and how much time the students spend in each US laboratory will depend on the student’s individual plans and budget and will need to be negotiated with the respective US Professors. Each participant is expected to write a short account of their trip focussing on the scientific and social highlights of the meeting and the laboratories they visited. These will be posted on the student pages of the LCPSF website. In the following year, awardees may be asked to act as local graduate hosts at the LCPSF for awardees of the US graduate student exchange program as part of the reciprocal arrangement.  

Selection and eligibility
Each year up to four students will be selected for the exchange program from the group of annual LCPSF poster prize winners. The poster prize winners will be invited to submit an application for selection into the program. Selection will be merit based, although preference will be given to students in the third or fourth years of their PhD. Only Australian citizens or residents are eligible and students must be enrolled in a PhD course at the time of the Protein Society Symposium (July/August of each year). A panel of scientists representing diverse areas of protein structure and function will make the final selection.

Funding
Successful applicants will be awarded $2000 in lieu of the poster prize. It is expected that the applicant’s supervisor or Department will also assist with travel expenses. The Protein Society will pay the students’ symposium registration fees.

Applications and notification
Eligible students should complete the application form (download LCPSF_GSEP_2012.docx) and insert a CV outlining educational qualifications, refereed publications, conference abstracts and any awards. The completed Application Form including the CV should be saved as a single pdf file and emailed to Kaye Truscott (K.Truscott@latrobe.edu.au) by close of business on 16th February 2012. Applicants will be notified of the outcome, via email in late February, by a representative of the LCPSF International Liaison and Student Initiatives Subcommittes.


TRAVEL GRANTS FOR INTERSTATE AND INTERNATIONAL STUDENTS

There were no Travel Grants available for the 2012 meeting. 
 

Follow the Lorne Proteins Conference on Facebook -
Keep up with the latest conference news and keep in contact with your friends you have made in Lorne!